Friday, September 29, 2017

Friday's Picks: Neutral for Fall

Happy Friday! In general I love neutrals and for fall colors it's no different.  If tan is an option, then I'm usually drawn to that - especially with purses and shoes.  A classic cream or tan goes with anything and can make outfit planning easy. A few of my favorites below... 







Have a good weekend! xx 

Wednesday, September 27, 2017

This & That

We've been trying to get a date night in each week - not just grabbing dinner while we're out running errands but an actual date night.  Yesterday we did a huge freezer/pantry stock up and made a few of our favorite meals to freeze so after all that we decided dinner outside of our kitchen was best.


The weather has been so warm so we just hadn't gotten around to getting our fall mums yet - another thing we crossed off yesterday.  Next is setting off to the pumpkin patch for a few pumpkins.


Every Saturday morning around here starts off with game day - our favorite show.  They unamimously picked Penn State to win Saturday night which they did - at the very last second.  We had some family over for pizza before the game and some friends over during - there was quite a bit of breath holding going on.


Fridays are usually our fun lunch day if we're at the office so my mom and I walked a couple blocks over to pick up lunch and run in a favorite boutique for a few stuffed animals for the little guy.


Speaking of meals, I talked Derek into one last (maybe?!) Shake Shack lunch recently - I have to get it in while I can still blame it on the baby.


Stella heard dinner was being brought home and laid waiting and watching.


Photo sorting.  I've been trying to get caught up with getting past photos printed out and organized and finally have - now I'll try to just do it every few months or so - in addition to backing them up on a flash drive - you can never be too safe! 


Monday, September 25, 2017

Pregnancy: Weeks 35-36

Hard to believe it's time for another update and that there will only be one or two after this - the time has flown by.  Things are still going well for the most part - I have a cough that just won't seem to go away and am feeling a little bit more tired here and there.  Pregnancy brain is definitely real - I got a text from Derek last week laughing and wondering why I'd put the feta cheese away into the pantry not the fridge.

35 weeks (top), 36 weeks (bottom)

Baby's Size:
Braided Nutella Bread (35 weeks) - 19-22 inches, 5.5 pounds according to the baby app
Zucchini Bread (36 Weeks) - 19-22 inches, 6 pounds according to the baby app

Gender:

It's a boy!

Best Moments/What We've Been Up To:

35 weeks: We made a second trip up to State College for another game and sitting in the stadium really wasn't as bad as I expected.  We got everything out of the boxes and setup - bassinet, swing, sleep and play, etc. Derek installed the base for the car seat into my car - we still need to get one for him and to figure out the actual car seat.  A pedicure with an extra long foot massage was key to enjoy.

36 weeks: This week was filled lots of little things that we've been meaning to do for a while but just never got around to - figured out how to work the stroller/car seat, put batteries into needed things and I finally packed our hospital bags.  We did a big wine stock up for post baby - a shopping trip I was looking forward to for so long!  Our hospital tour was this week so now we're all set on where to go and such.  I had my 36 week doctor's appointment and go every week at this point - I love hearing the galloping of the heartbeat - right about 140.  


Movement:
Yes! But you can tell he's running out of room and some different types of kicks.  We were out to dinner outside where there was music playing and he would not stop - you could see the kicks and he just kept going.

He also had hiccups for the first time - maybe the only! I always wondered how people knew it was hiccups and not kicks but it was like once it started then I knew for sure (and googled).  A few nights I just laid and watched the kicks - won't be long until that baby is on the outside kicking around!

Nursery:

It's officially finished other than one print from Etsy I want to do with his birth info and an empty frame for a newborn photo.  Derek hung a mirror and final wall hanging and I cut the tags off everything, got everything out of piles and put into place, etc.  Clothes are washed and hung up - just need to organize a few more little things.

*Edit* (36 weeks) All done! We put the final things away and into the closet, put away some random piles and such - it's ready to go!

Maternity Clothes:

With the warmer weather it's been back to dresses - I'm wondering at this rate if I'll even be able to wear a couple of the few fall pieces that I got if this weather keeps up.

Missing:

Wine at tailgates! I missed cocktails the whole time but not being able to enjoy one at a tailgate is rough.  I miss sleeping through the night (I'll be missing that for a while) as bathroom breaks are getting more frequent.

Cravings/Aversions:
Nothing crazy - usually just if I hear something that sounds good then I want it.  We splurged one week with McDonalds and another with Shake Shack - only so much longer that I can blame it on the baby!

My mom always keeps the candy dish full at the office and I've been living for this simple little Hershey chocolate nuggets. Such a treat after lunch.

Feeling... Symptoms/Sleep:

35 weeks - This was a much better week for me in terms of energy, aches/pains. I wake up multiple times for the bathroom overnight, if I don't drink enough water during the day my feet swell right up, and our bed is so high it's tough to jump up into so we got a little step stool for me.  I think maybe my first round of braxton hicks contractions but nothing crazy. 

As far as feeling good I've noticed getting in a walk in the morning and night as well as keeping up with the water drinking makes me feel tons better.  


I did have a cold this week and it was tiring and just not fun - luckily it's clearing up.  A two hour nap one day was the best thing.

36 weeks - This week was hot - it's a late September heat wave we have going on and it has me laughing because our wedding day was right in the midst of a September heat wave too so why not when preparing for baby too.  A few days I've only been able to do my wedding bands but that's more due to how hot it is as opposed to just swelling.  My weight gain has leveled out for a bit and I'm not complaining about that - I get full much easier too.

I had one very sleepless night filled with bathroom trips and trouble getting back to sleep along with trying to kick this terrible cough I have.

Exercise:

Walks! I can't believe that I still have the energy that I do and I'm just hoping it keeps lasting.  While some mornings it might take me longer than others to get out of bed - I still try to get outside even if it sets me behind for the day and we finish the day the same way.

Some mornings I just can't get myself up and opt for the extra sleep since I'm usually up a few times during the week - plus it's just been too hot to get out.

Dad to Be:

Derek's been a pro at putting things together (never reading instructions though!) and helping with little things like picking things up off the floor so I don't have too haha! I hope the foot rubs continue after the baby comes...

Happy, Moody & Final Pregnancy Things: 

Happy! Starting to get a little bit nervous as things get closer but more excited.  Given that I work for a family business maternity leave is pretty easy to figure out - I won't just completely stop for a few months but luckily I can bring the baby with me or bring work home so just getting organized with a plan was nice.  I started browsing birth announcements - I love anything that can go in the mail.

Excited For:

35 weeks - Doctor's appointment - I have one next week and this was my final two week stretch, it'll be once a week now.  I'm also excited to just keep tying up some loose ends - by the time I hit 37 weeks I really want to have anything I want done and then just some things that would be great to do but don't necessarily have to be done like freezer meals and such to tackle.

36 weeks -  Looking forward to his arrival! I'm sure we have a few weeks left but now that I'm just about to 37 weeks he could really come anytime!  We've crossed most of our to do's off other than a few little things so I'm looking forward to a little bit more relaxing.


Friday, September 22, 2017

Friday Picks

Happy Friday! Finally the first official day of fall - to me it feels like fall starts once Labor Day hits but it certainly hasn't felt like it around here lately.  

It's been a while since I've done a Friday Picks post and I sure have missed browsing for new styles. I'm getting really eager for some post baby shopping.  I'm all set on comfy casual clothes to enjoy while relaxing around the house but I can't wait to stock up on a few new pieces.  A new pair of shoes (or two) will be nice to pickup and my favorite item on my radar is this maxwell tote - I think it would be great to tote things back and forth to the office or even to use as a purse/diaper bag.




Enjoy your weekend! xx

Thursday, September 21, 2017

Nursery Inspiration

The nursery is officially done - we finished things up two nights ago - the wall hangings are hung, the bookshelves are decorated, the closet is organized.  It was a lot of fun to set up but it's also a relief to know that it's done, clean and ready.  There are tons of monogram and personalized touches (and no his name isn't Bennett or Tyler from the items below!) and we kept it mostly navy/white.  The way things turned out it ended up that red, aqua and gray were a few accent colors just on accident from things we picked.

My mom very kindly offered to get us the nursery furniture and we kept things simple with all white furniture - crib, changing table, bookshelves.  We picked a nice navy pottery barn kids bedding set to go with it.  I love the glider below because it isn't too "baby" like and could be used in a bigger boy room - we do have a rocking chair downstairs in our playroom to rock in too.

The room and walls are filled but not overdone - I didn't want "stuff" everywhere.  I love the baskets from Target below - we have small ones on the bookshelves for blankets, burp cloths, socks and such and a couple of the bigger ones throughout the room - now holding diapers but can be used for toys in the future.

Some of my style is a little old fashioned and I found a bunch of wooden toys on Etsy that I loved in addition to the two rattles for one of the shelves in addition to blankets, a pacifier jar and such.  The prints all fit the color scheme and the large "Jesus Loves Me" one is definitely a favorite.  There is of course a dog stuffed animal that looks like our sweet Stella that one of my best friends got us and one that looks like our family dog, Nash, that my mom got us.  Plenty of books, toys, stuffed animals and such too. 

Looking forward to sharing after he's here!




Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Baby Registry

The big baby registry post... my baby shower was a month ago and we got so many wonderful things. We had a separate list of a few things to get on our own and then spent the past month working on anything that was left and was needed sooner than later - items for when he's a few months old we can work on in the future.

I was so excited to make the registry but it is for sure overwhelming - there are so many items, so many brands, etc!!  I picked a few places to register because each had different things to offer but more on that below.  I went by the registry guide of needed items, did research, looked at a few friends registries and asked moms what the must have items were.  Our house is mostly neutral (with touches of navy - perfect for a boy!) so I tried to mostly stick with neutral items that would blend in and could also be used for any gender in the future.

In addition to needing things for the house I'll have a nursery at my office and we are on the go a lot so we needed a few pieces for travel so I tried to find a variety of things to test out.

Sleep:
All I've heard is how the halo bassinest is wonderful - we just put it together recently and it looks as great as it sounds.  I picked up a few different types of the sleep sacks to see which baby prefers and I'm not sure who will love the sound machine more Derek/I to keep noise out of the babies room or the baby enjoying the sounds.

Though my love for navy - my diaper bag is black/tan so for the pack n play I stuck with that theme plus it will go with the neutrals in our house.  I heard the zip up onesies are a must for sleeping and of course a few bedtime prayer books. 

aden + anais stroller blanket (other blanket favorites...

Feeding:
I've heard to try out a few different bottle types to see which baby likes most so we went with comotomo and tommee tippee along with the medela ones that come with the breast pump.  I opted for the boon drying rack in white because - neutral.  A recommendation was to use the muslin blankets as burp cloths since they are longer so I picked up a pack of those for burping in addition to normal burp cloths and some simple white bibs.

cotton muslin bibs set (also love the cute for outfit sets too)

Travel/On the Go:
Out of all the stroller brands the one that we both agreed on most was Nuna (we also picked up the maxi cosi during the Nordstrom sale). I like that the Nuna carseat can go right into the stroller - especially in the beginning - we do still need to learn how to use both - this weekend! We saw a friend use the baby bjorn carrier and knew we needed it - Derek is dying to be the one to wear it.  

As we head into cold season I knew a car seat cover was key.  All the little needs like pacifier clips and wipes, stroller toys, a stroller holder, bottle carrier, etc.

Two things I love the idea of - the anywhere disposable pads for changing and what not and the tote savy.  I didn't get a diaper bag just a tote and will most likely switch between a few so I love that you can keep everything organized and move it from bag to bag along with a couple other little needs.

nuna car seat (& stroller adapter)
tote savvy insert (a few of these logan and lenora items: wet dry/changing pad/pouch)

Diapering & Bathing:
We have a few tubs to start with - a little foam insert for the sink as well as the 4moms tub and the angel care baby bath support which looks like it'll be easy to use especially in the beginning - along with a handful of towels and washcloths - you can't help but splurge on a cute little bathrobe. 

We picked a few different varieties of bath products to try but Johnson & Johnson and Honest Company topped the list.

As far as diapering - pampers swaddlers are our pick for now and the ubbi diaper pail seems to be quite popular.  

We have a second changing table downstairs so having a diaper caddy makes things easy to keep a few extra supplies down there.


Play:
This category could go on and on - all the little toys are so cute - and I have christmas list started for sure. We tried to only register for things that we needed sooner than later and are set for when he is finally big enough for some play time.  

I love all the books and stuffed animals - I can never pass up a chance to flip through the baby books and add to the collection.  Sohpie the Giraffe is my favorite and I love all the accessories that come along with her.  Another recommendation was the dreams soother and the classics like a play mat, activity center and jumper.


Miscellaneous: 
Not everything listed above was registered for - some things we had on a list for ourselves and some we borrowed including a few of the items below.

Everything Pottery Barn Kids is adorable and two of my favorites are the dog playmat (looks like Stella) and the rocker - they were such great treats as gifts!

Everything 4mom's is popular and we plan to borrow the mamaroo from a friend to try out.  Things like the highchair and baby monitor set we researched endlessly and picked up ourselves - again 4moms seems to work great and for the baby monitor it was recommended we go wireless and with an extra monitor.

4moms high chair (also have my eye on the ever popular ikea one)

Favorite Clothing/Accessory Brands:
I'm addicted to shopping for little baby clothes - I like doing it now while it's fun as opposed to a hurried errand.  I have certain styles I like, certain colors and such and have slowly worked up a nice little wardrobe for our guy - his first few months will be during the holidays and I'd rather enjoy the holidays then need to be out stocking up on things.  

So far my favorite brands are polo, kissy kiss, little me, the carter's just one you line and a few of the gerber pieces from target.  I like soft and easy and simple little outfits.  

I can't stop myself from browsing Etsy - the monogram items are too cute - clothes/accessories and I love some of the more old fashion looking pieces.

Where to Register & Registry Perks: 
I registered at Babies R Us, Target and Pottery Barn Kids - each had pluses and minuses but I liked them all.  I've heard amazing things about Buy Buy Baby - we just don't have one super close, although after browsing their website I've seen some things I like to order myself or save for Christmas so I might make a little one there just to keep things organized.

Babies R Us gives a 10% off completion discount to be used once in store or online - we made a list of necessities we needed after the baby shower and went for those items with the discount and will just order whatever else we still need as time goes.  The company did just announce bankruptcy, however, so we'll see what their future holds!

Target gives a nice welcome bag (we may have gotten a few of them) and offers 15% off completion coupon - once to use in store, once to use online.  My only dislike is that my online code didn't work and I'm still waiting for my new one.

Pottery Barn Kids offers a 10% discount also but you're better off just using one of their sales for items you still need.


I'll be sure to share our favorites once the baby is here and such... xx 

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Feeling Fall


We're just a few days away from the start of fall - it sure was feeling like it around here late summer with cooler temperatures but this week we're back up into the upper 70's/low 80's - hoping it cools off a little soon.


I finally gave in and decorated for fall last weekend - I did a combination of things we had from the old house then things to better suit this house (ex. our kitchen table wouldn't fit the old fall placemats so I had to rethink a little bit) - it's always fun pulling out the decorations this time of the year and even more so for the first time around here!



table runner - pottery barn
placemats - pier 1
chargers - pier 1
napkins - pottery barn
accent plates - crate & barrel
pumpin centerpieces - pier 1


centerpiece - pier 1 
signs & small pumpkins - michaels 
topiaries - pier 1 


centerpiece/credenza flowers - home goods


candles - bath & body
dishtowels - home goods


signs, pumpkins, wheelbarrow - michaels


bigger pumpkins - home goods
smaller pumpkins - michaels 
lanterns - pier 1
candlestick holders - pier 1
mirror - pier 1

Monday, September 18, 2017

Penn State vs Georgia State


Happy Monday! We spent another weekend up in State College - Penn State opened the season with home games 4/5 weekends in September - we've been to two of those so far and are considering a final one later this month depending on the baby - with one home game in October, we won't be back until November.  

Derek, Stella & I headed up Friday afternoon and got there in time to head downtown with my parents for an early dinner outside at The Tavern plus a little shopping - the weather was summer like so we ate outside and strolled the streets.  The next morning we had friends arriving for the game so this pregnant gal headed to bed early.


Saturday night we were playing Georgia State with at 7:30 start so we had a leisurely morning (the best!) an when our friends got down there headed down for a tailgate in the nice (hot!) weather.  My aunt and cousin also came so we had a great group.


On the menu this week were potato soup and pulled pork/meatball sliders - so not coordinating with the weather but in November our tailgates will be more at the house before the game and we're still deciding if we'll head back once more so I was determined to get in a nice fall tailgate even if it was upper 70's.

We also had a tailgate snack variety, chips/guac, potato chips/dip, cheese platter and caprese salad and a variety of desserts - I made a few, my girlfriend brought the prettiest game day pretzels and we had a cake for my cousins birthday.


Games under the lights are always a blast - this one was a complete blowout - we won 56-0!  We took off at the end of the 3rd quarter to head back to the house, check on the pups and watch the other football games.


Since the season started we've been flip flopping with our Rose Bowl buddies - USC between number 4/5 in the country - this week we're back to number 4 and hopefully there to stay!

Have a good week! xx